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Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Council members Lowenthal and Neal are asking the Council to support new parcel tax: What do you think?

Council
members Suja Lowenthal and Steven Neal have placed an item on next
Council meeting's agenda calling for the entire City Council to support a
parcel tax being proposed by Los Angeles County staff. The parcel tax
would be assessed on every property in LA County and would fund and
establish an annual clean water fee to fund the Clean Water, Clean Beaches Program (www.lacountycleanwater.org).

Funds
will be used by cities and the County in the same cities and watersheds
where they are collected. The City public property is estimated to be
assessed $1.6 million with this tax and the City is estimated to receive
$5.1 million from the tax.

You
need to know that the proposed tax has not been examined in detail by
the City Council. We have not been given details why the amounts to be
assessed were set at those levels and what other measures could be taken
by LA County to clean up the storm water.

No
one is against clean water. What I find objectionable is that without
examination of this tax and discussion about what other measures could
be taken to clean up the storm water problem without taxing residents
and businesses and government, the City Council is being encouraged to
jump on board a proposal "as is."

Additionally,
what was not disclosed in this council agenda item is the fact that
our own LA County Supervisor Don Knabe and the Long Beach Unified
School District are opposed to the measure.

I
say wait until the LA County Board of Supervisors holds its public
meeting on this issue on January 15th before the Council votes. We need
to hear the input of our residents. We also need to find out what the
final version of this proposal actually will be if placed before the
voters. We really need to know what we are doing before we jump on this
bandwagon.

Before
you answer my poll on this item, you need to read several documents
that explain what is being proposed by LA County and being asked for
support by two council members.

P.S.
LA County Board of Supervisors will hold a public meeting to listen to
residents about this proposed tax at 9:30 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room, Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration, 500 West Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012.

A
Notice of Public Hearing has been mailed to all property owners within
the Los Angeles County Flood Control District. At the public hearing,
the Board of Supervisors will receive oral and written testimony about
the proposed clean water fee. Any property owner may testify or file a
written protest with the Executive Officer of the Board of Supervisors
at any time before the end of the public hearing. A written protest must
identify the parcel address and assessor's parcel number, and must be
signed by the property owner or an authorized representative.